Given Wang An's strength and combat prowess, let alone a single Niu Dalei, even if Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and the other three of them attacked together, Wang An wouldn't even spare them a glance.
That being said, the fact that Niu Dalei could ignore Wang An's formidable reputation and actually dare to step forward and challenge him to a duel meant that he was, in his own right, quite gutsy.
What he didn't know was that Wang An's reputation wasn't just for show; it had been earned legitimately, forged with fists and feet. It was far beyond the reach of a brute like him who relied solely on being tall and sturdy to bully others.
Wang An didn't hold back a single bit with this kick; instead, he put every ounce of strength he had into it. Thus, it was only natural that Niu Dalei was sent flying.
Niu Dalei soared roughly two meters through the air before gravity took hold, and he slammed heavily onto the ground with a dull "thud."
The moment Niu Dalei hit the ground, Wang An lunged forward in a single stride, swinging his large foot to rain kicks down on the fallen man.
Judging by the arc of Wang An's thigh, the force of the kicks was certainly not small.
However, because Wang An's initial kick had landed squarely in his solar plexus, Niu Dalei felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He hadn't recovered yet and couldn't even manage to dodge.
Consequently, Wang An's size 45 feet landed solidly and repeatedly on Niu Dalei's body.
Niu Dalei never imagined that despite his towering height and sturdy build, he wouldn't even last a single exchange against Wang An, being knocked flat by a single kick.
His chest already felt suffocated and tight, and combined with the pain radiating through his body, Niu Dalei let out a muffled groan, gritting his teeth in a low wail.
There was no helping it; when a person's solar plexus is struck, anyone will feel as if they can't catch their breath. Not only is it impossible to scream, but they can't even raise their voice to speak.
Fortunately, Niu Dalei hadn't entered the mountains alone; he was with Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and three other members of the Niu family.
With Niu Dalei being beaten, Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and the other four naturally couldn't just stand by and watch.
So, after Wang An had delivered several swift and brutal kicks to Niu Dalei, Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and the other two Niu family members ran over, shouting urgently
"Stop it! We all live in the same village, Xiao An, what are you doing?"
"Stop kicking, stop kicking! You're going to kick him to death!"
Niu Dalin was the fastest. He stepped forward to break up the fight, urging desperately
"Xiao An, we'll back off right now, alright? Give me some face and stop hitting Dalei."
Niu Dashuang followed close behind, joining Niu Dalin in blocking Wang An from continuing, while also saying urgently
"Xiao An, we'll get far away from here right now, just stop hitting him, okay?"
The two who arrived later did almost the same, saying similar things—all of them trying to block and persuade him. Only then did Wang An take the opportunity to stop kicking Niu Dalei. He pointed at Niu Dalei and cursed sharply
"You little brat, you've really got some nerve. If your brother and the others weren't here, I'd drag you to the big ditch and bury you. Fuck you, daring to lay a hand on me—you really don't know how the word 'death' is written..."
If anyone else had been beating Niu Dalei, Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and the other four would likely have jumped in to help long ago. In this era, people with the same surname in a village were extremely united.
But the one doing the beating was Wang An, and Niu Dalin and Niu Dashuang truly didn't dare to act.
On one hand, they knew that even if the four of them attacked together, the ones ending up beaten would definitely be them, not Wang An.
Anyone who hadn't truly witnessed how capable Wang An was in a fight could never understand the sheer sense of helplessness one felt when fighting him.
On the other hand, they knew they couldn't afford to offend Wang An. If they made an enemy of him now, Wang An would certainly retaliate later.
This was something that those who hadn't witnessed Wang An's sinister side could never understand—the feeling of being brutally beaten by Wang An and then sent to spend time in the "fence" (jail). It was absolute despair.
Previously, the Kaoshan Village militia members Niu Dawei and Niu Dayou had been considered figures of some standing in the village.
But because they plotted against Wang An and fought him, they were beaten severely and then sent to a cell for over three months under the guise of being "accomplices of enemy spies."
If they hadn't actually been innocent of being spies and known nothing about "enemy agents," they likely would have been "rewarded" with a bullet to the head.
Niu Dalin and Niu Dashuang, as close relatives, had witnessed the entire ordeal involving Niu Dabin and the spy named Dahui, as well as Niu Dayou and Niu Dawei being sent to the fence.
Therefore, these two could only try to break up the fight and persuade him; they didn't dare to attack together.
As for the other two, they were mere followers and naturally wouldn't act.
However, the cowardly behavior of these four was witnessed firsthand by Niu Dalei, who was lying on the ground.
Although Niu Dalei had been kicked severely and was in bad shape, he had originally held onto a sliver of hope.
That sliver of hope was that Niu Dalin, Niu Dashuang, and the others would give Wang An a thorough beating to vent his anger for him.
In the village, whenever people of the same surname fought, others of the same name would basically step in to help without question.
But to Niu Dalei's surprise, while he was still being beaten, these two didn't just fail to help him vent his anger—they surrendered quite decisively!
Mainly, they surrendered before the fight had even properly started?
Niu Dalei found this absolutely unbelievable; he simply couldn't accept it.
So, just as Wang An finished cursing Niu Dalei and turned around, pretending to be "very angry" while intending to argue a few words with Niu Dalin to make them leave quickly...
And just as Niu Dalin wanted to say a few polite words and then take Niu Dalei away immediately...
Niu Dalei, whose body had finally recovered a bit, snapped. He stood up from the ground and shouted
"Brother Dalin, Brother Dashuang, hit him for me! He's beaten me into this fucking state, why aren't you helping me hit him?"
Truth be told, Niu Dalei was like a spoiled child; not only did he have an inflated sense of self, but he was also completely oblivious to the situation.
He didn't realize that, under these circumstances, keeping his mouth shut was actually his best option.
The moment Niu Dalei's words came out, the scene, which had been relatively harmonious, suddenly froze.
After staring blankly for two seconds, Wang An was once again amused by the absurdity. As for fighting, that was Wang An's favorite thing.
Not satisfied? Then let's go! (End of Chapter)